How long will it take Anthony Armstrong to learn the Miami Dolphins' offense?

Mike Berardino

For now Anthony Armstrong is the big addition at the Miami Dolphins' most needy position.

Soon ex-Gator Jabar Gaffney could join the fold as well. Or maybe it will be some other castoff looking for a fresh start.

Whatever the case, whatever the name, Brian Hartline knows this much: It won't be easy for the new guy to get up to speed.

Hartline missed the entire Dolphins training camp and preseason, but at least he had the benefit of sitting in meetings and taking mental reps from the sidelines. Plus, Hartline was present from Day 1 of the offseason install of Mike Sherman's offense.

Armstrong and whoever else shows up from here forward? They won't have those advantages.

"It's a huge learning curve," Hartline said. "There might be some situations where a veteran coach knows what to do with that, but as far as I’m concerned, to learn a whole offfense in a week for Game 1, that’s not going to happen. Especially with all the signals and how we use the tempo."

Asked if he viewed such an integration as a multiweek process, Hartline nodded and said he "would think so."

Dolphins coach Joe Philbin was more upbeat about the potential challenge when asked about it Friday evening. He talked about bringing former Dolphins tight end Donald Lee into Green Bay five days before the 2005 opener and getting him up to speed to play in Week 1.

"They bring in Donald Lee, and say, 'Joe, go and work him out,' " Philbin recalled, "and they asked me the question ... 'Can you coach him?' So I spent an hour with him on the board, and I said, ‘Yeah I think he’ll work at it. It might take a little time.’ "

Lee wound up making 33 catches for 294 yards and two touchdowns that season, but it took him until Week 4 to make his first reception. It wasn't until Week 7 -- after the Packers' bye week -- that Lee managed more than one reception in a game.

The Dolphins probably can't wait that long for Armstrong to make a significant contribution, but they may have no other choice but to remain patient while he learns a complex offense.